Suction cleaner



Feb. 3, 1942. p. c. GERBER EIAL 2,271,555

SUCTION CLEANER Filed July 15, 1939 Sheets-Sheet l I I I I INVENTORSflale 6. Gerber & Edward 1?. Swan ATTORNEY SUCTION} CLEANER Filed July15, 1.959 s Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS Dale L. Gerber:

ATTORNEY I I BY I [dward A. Swann 24 a? 1 mama Feb; 3, 1942:

v SUCTIOWCLEANER D. c. GERBER ET 1. 2,271,555

Filed July l5, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 l6 flale Gerb BY Edward 1?. Swan"ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 3, 1942 Dale. 0. Gerber Canton, Ohio, assign andEdward-r12; Swanm, North ors to: The Hoover Company, North. Canton,Ohio, a corporation of Ohio ApplicationJul'y 15, 1939, Serial No. 28457812 Claims: (,Cl.,15-182) The present invention relates to suctioncleaners in general and particularly to new and novel adjustableagitating brushes in rotary agitators for suction cleaners. Morespecifically the invention comprises a new and improved rotary agitatorfor a suction cleaner embodying an adjustable agitating element which isradially-movable to compensate for decrease in radial extension withwear.

Itis an object of the present invention to provide a new and improvedsuction cleaner. It is another object of the invention to provide a newand improved rotary agitator for a suction cleaner. It'is another objectof the invention to provide a new and improved adjustable agitatingelement for a rotary agitator of a suction cleaner. A still'furtherobject of the invention is to provide a new and improved rotary agitatorembodying a reversible, helically extending brush which is adjustable tocompensate for brush wear; Still another object of the invention is toprovide asimple, economically'manufactured replaceable brush elementwhich cooperates with the brush seat in the rotary agitator in a newand'novel manner. These and other more specific objects will appear uponreading the following specification and claims and upon considering inconnection therewith the attached drawings to which they relate.

Referring now to the drawings in which preferred embodiments of theinvention are disclosed:

Figure lis a front elevation of a modern suction cleaner embodying anagitator constructed in accordance with the present invention, certainparts of the casing being broken away;

Figure 2 is a side view of an agitator constructed in accordance withthe present invention with certain parts of the agitator body brokenaway and shown in section, the brush being positioned in its innerradial position;

Figure 3 is a section upon the line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 2 but with the brush adjusted tothe worn brush position or outer radial position;

Figure 5 is a section through'the brush and brushseat being taken uponthe line 5-5 of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a section upon the line 6-6 of Figure 2;

Figure '7 is a section upon the line 1-1 of ure 2;

Figure 8 is a perspective view of, the brush seatremoved' from theagitator body;

' second embodiment of the invention,

Figure 9 is a view in perspective of the brush element itself; I

Figure 10 is a side elevation of. one-half of an agitator constructed inaccordance with the certain parts being broken away and the brush beingpositioned in the new brush position or inner radial position;

Figure 11 is a view similar to Figure 10 but with the brush positionedin its outer radial position or worn brush position;

Figure 12 is a section upon the line l2-l2 of Figure 10;

' Figure 13 is a top view of the brush back of the second embodiment ofthe invention,

' In the drawings a modern suction cleaner is illustrated and is seen tocomprise a nozzle I which is interiorly connected through a passageway 2to a fan chamber 3 which houses a suctioncreating fan 4' carried by thelower end of the motor shaft 5. The motor is not shown but is positionedimmediately above the fan chamber 3'in the motor housing 6. Apower-transmitting belt 1 connects the lower end of motor shaft 5 to therotary agitator In which is rotatably positioned within the nozzle l andwhich will be hereinafter fully described. The cleaner is mov ablysupported upon wheels 8 and, as in the usual cleaner, a pivoted handle 91s provided by which the operator can exert the necessary propelling andguiding forces.

Referring now to Figures 2 to 9, inclusive, in particular, the agitatorconstructed in accordance with the first preferred embodiment of theinvention is illustrated. Agitator I0 is seen to comprise an elongatedhollow cylindrical body H which is formed substantially midway of' itslength with a recessed grooved portion forming a pulley l2. At each ofits ends is positioned a thread guard l3 carried by longitudinallyextending stationary supporting shaft M by which the agitator isrotatably mounted within the cleaner nozzle.

Upon the surface of the agitator body II is positioned a helicallyextending rigid beater bar 16 which is seen to' have a radial projectionbeyond the normal circumference of the agitator.

As the twov halves of the. agitator body are substantially identicalonly one half thereof will be described. Spaced substantially degreescircumferentially from the beater bar upon each side of the centrallylocated pulley l2 isa brush seat l8 which is seen to be formed ofparallel side walls 19 which extend angularly across the agitator bodyand. which in their radial d1- mensions are parallel to a single radiusline R-R, as illustrated in Figure 6. It is seen, therefore, that eachside wall of each brush seat is a straight wall parallel to the oppositeside wall. A bottom curved wall extends between the side walls l9 whileat the ends thereof are parallel end walls 2| which lie in planesextending perpendicular to the axis of the agitator body II and to theaxis of rotation l4. The walls I9, therefore, intersect the plane of theend walls 2| at an angle less than 90 degrees.

The brush seat I8 is preferably formed as a separate stamped or moldedelement, as indicated in Figure 8, there being an overturned rim 22around the top of the side and end walls which is adapted to be secured,as by welding, to the inner face of the agitator body The end walls 2|of the brush seat are cut out in a definite manner to permit of brushadjustment. At the outer end the brush seat is formed with separatedlower shoulders 24, there being an intermediate shoulder 25 at ahigherelevation therebetween. At the opposite end of the brush back is asingle shoulder 26 which is at a height in the brush seat halfwaybetween the shoulders 24 and 25. The brush seat construction iscompleted by the presence of elongated leaf springs 21 which arecentrally fastened to the bottom wall 2!] of the seat and which extendto the ends thereof where they are adapted to contact the removablebrush element now to be described.

Removably positioned within the brush seat I8 is the brush element 30comprising a helically extending row of brush tufts carried by a rigidback 3| formed with parallel side walls 32 spaced apart a distanceslightly less than the walls IQ of the brush seat and by parallel endWalls 33, the end walls being related to the side walls in the samemanner as the end walls of the brush seat are related to the side wallsthereof. Each end wall 33 is provided with an abutment shoulder,indicated by the reference character 35 and at the opposite end by thereference character 36. Shoulder 35 is positioned higher upon the endplate 33 than is shoulder 36 and is relatively narrow so that it isadapted to extend between the shoulders 24 at the outer end of the brushseat and into contact with the upper shoulder 25. The wide shoulder 36is at a lower height on the brush back than shoulder '35 and issufiiciently wide that it extends entirely across the brush seat betweenthe shoulders 24, so that it cannot pass therebetween and into contactwith the shoulder 25. The vertical distance separating the shoulders 35and 36 is equal to one-half the distance separating shoulders 24 and 25,that is, equal to the vertical distance separating either shoulder 24 orshoulder 25 from intermediate shoulder 26.

The relationship is such that the brush'30 is adapted to be positionedwithin the seat IS in either of two reversed positions. In the oneposition the wide brush shoulder 36 will underlie the low seat shoulders24 while at the opposite end the high, narrow brush shoulder 35 abutsthe intermediate seat shoulder 26. In this position, that illustrated inFigure 2, the brush is in its new brush position which is also its innerradial position. The brush is also adapted to be reversed in whichposition the upper narrow shoulder 35 would extend between shoulders 24,24 and would contact theupper seat shoulder 25 at'the outer end of thebrush seat, while the lower wide brush shoulder 36 would contact theintermediate seat shoulder 26. Obviously each end of the brush back isadvanced outwardly a distance equal to one-half that separating theshoulders 24 and 25, the intermediate shoulder 26 being positioned halfway therebetween. This second adjustment is the worn brush position orthe outer radial position.

In either of its two positions the contact with the bottom of the rigidbrush back 3| by the flexible leaf springs 21 causes the brush to beheld radially outward and into contact with the overlying shoulders.When the agitator is rotating, of course, centrifugal force assists theleaf spring.

It'is to be noted that the brush back 3| is made slightly shorter thanthe length of the brush seat |8 in order that it can be shiftedlengthwise to displace one end shoulder from underneath the overlyingseat shoulder to permit outward displacement of that end of the brushback from the agitator seat. Upon such displacement at one end it ispossible to withdraw the entire brush to accomplish either reversal orreplacement.

Referring now to Figures 10 to 13, inclusive, the second preferredembodiment of the invention is illustrated. The agitator is constructedin the manner of the first embodiment and the same reference charactersare used to illustrate the same parts. The following differences arepresent, however. The adjusting shoulders 24, 25 and 26 at the ends ofthe brush seat have been eliminated and instead the end walls 2| areperf ectly flat. Additionally, the leaf spring 21 has been omitted inthis embodiment. Also, the brush back 3| is not provided with theshoulders 35 and 36 at the ends thereof. In this second embodiment,however, the rigid brush back 3|, which is shaped as in the firstembodiment, is formed on its underside with downwardlyprojectingabutment shoulders 40 which, in the new brush or inner radialposition make contact with the surface of the bottom plate 20 of thebrush seat l8. The latter is itself provided with upwardly projectingshoulders 4| and, when the brush is reversed to its worn brush or outerradial position, as illustrated in Figure 11, the downwardly projectingshoulders 40 on the rigid brush back contact and rest upon the upwardlyprojecting shoulders 4| upon the brush seat to give to the brush anupward or outer movement which is equal to the height of the seatshoulders 4|. In this embodiment of the invention the brush is retainedin the brush seat by means of screws 42 which pass downwardly throughthe ends of the brush back 3| and into threaded openings 43 formed inthe brush seat. Reference to Figure 13 illustrates the shape of thebrush element itself which is seen to have parallel side Walls 32 andparallel ends walls 33. The brush element of the first embodiment issimilarly shaped with the exception that the projecting shoulders 35 and36 extend outwardly from the end walls 33.

The brush tufts of the agitator brush constructed in accordance with thepresent invention, when positioned in the agitator body, pro- J'ectsubstantially radially,.relative to the axis of rotation at all points.The brush tufts are so mounted in the rigid brush back 3| that'theirends lie in a helix about that axis. The formation and shape of the backpermits of the economical manufacture of the brush by simple processesand the combination of the seating arrangement of the back and seatinsures ease of adjustment, The construction also has theladvantage thatupon reversal and radial adjustment, maximum radial movement occurs atthe brush center where the maximum wear occurs. As the brush seat sidewalls are parallel it is clear that the outward movement of the brushback therein will be a linear movement. Reference to Figures 5, 6 and 7illustrates that upon reversal that part of the brush at the center willmove in a truly radial direction to give a radial displacement of awhile at the ends of the brush the radial movement will be less than aand will be a distance D or c which, at any point along the brush lengthwill approximately equal a cos a where a is the angle made by the brushtuft, the adjustment of which is being considered with the axial planethrough the brush tuft having an adjustment a.

We claim:

1. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner or the like comprising acylindrical body, a brush seat extended angularly across said bodywithin the normal periphery thereof and formed with straight sides eachof which lies in a plane which extends parallel to a dividing planebetween said sides, a brush including a rigid back formed with straightparallel sides positioned in said seat, and means to retain said brushin place.

2. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner or the like comprising acylindrical body, a brush seat extended angularly across said bodywithin the normal periphery thereof and formed with sides lying inparallel planes, a brush reversibly positioned in said seat andincluding a rigid back formed with sides lying in straight parallelplanes and bristles carried by said back and extended helically about anaxis spaced from said back, and positioning means at the opposite endsof said back to position said back at different heights in said seat inreversed positions.

3. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner or the like comprising acylindrical body, a brush seat extended angularly across said bodywithin the normal periphery thereof and formed with sides lying inparallel planes, a brush reversibly positioned in said seat andincluding a rigid back formed with sides lying in parallel planes andbristles carried by said back and extended helically about an axisspaced from said back, and cooperating positioning means in said seatand on said back to position said back at different heights in said seatin the reversed positions.

4. A brush element for a rotary agitator comprising an elongated backformed with straight parallel sides each of which lies in a single planeand with a top surface which describes a spiral longitudinally of saidback, brush tufts seated in said surface and describing with their endsa spiral extending about a spaced axis.

5. A brush element for a rotary agitator comprising an elongated backformed with straight parallel longitudinally-extending sides each ofwhich lies in a single plane and with a top surface which at anytransverse section lies tangent to an imaginary cylinder, the points oftangency of said surface with said cylinder advancing circumferentiallyaround said cylinder at a uniform rate along the length of said back,and brush bristles extended from said back describing with their ends aspiral about a spaced axis.

6. A brush element for a suction cleaner rotary agitator comprisingbristles longitudinally arranged and describing at their outer ends aspiral which lies in an imaginary cylinder having its major longitudinalaxis spaced from said bristles; and a back mounting said bristles havingparallel longitudinally-extending sides each of which lies in a singleplane and parallel ends forming an angle of less than degrees with saidsides.

7 A brush element for a suction cleaner rotary agitator comprisinbristles longitudinally arranged and describing at their outer ends aspiral which lies in an imaginary cylinder having its major longitudinalaxis spaced from said bristles; and a back mounting said bristles havingparallel longitudinally-extending sides each of which lies in a singleplane, parallel ends forming an angle of less than 90 degrees with saidsides and positioning means on the ends.

8. A brush element for a suction cleaner rotary agitator comprisingbristles longitudinally arranged. and describing at their outer ends aspiral which lies in an imaginary cylinder having its major longitudinalaxis spaced from said bristles; and a back mounting said bristles havingparallel longitudinally-extending sides each of which lies in a singleplane, parallel ends forming an angle of less than 90 degrees with saidsides and projecting abutment shoulders at different heights on theopposite ends thereof.

9. A brush element for a suction cleaner rotary agitator comprisingbristles longitudinally arranged and describing at their outer ends aspiral which lies in an imaginary cylinder having its major longitudinalaxis spaced from said bristles; and a back mounting said bristles havingparallel longitudinally-extending sides each of which lies in a singleplane, parallel ends forming an angle of less than 90 degrees with saidsides, and downwardly projecting positioning abutments on the undersideof said back.

10. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner or the like comprising acylindrical body, a brush seat with longitudinally straight and parallelsides extended angularly across said body within the normal peripherythereof each side lying in a single plane, a brush including a rigidback with longitudinally straight and parallel sides each lying in asingle plane extended angularly across said body and positioned in saidseat, and means to position said rigid back at different heights in saidseat in the reversed positions.

11. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner or the like comprising acylindrical body, a brush seat with straight sides lying in parallelplanes extended angularly across said body and extending in a trulyradial direction in one section only,

a brush including a rigid back extended angularly across said body insaid seat, said brush being adapted to seat reversibly in said seat,means to secure said brush at difierent distances from the axis ofrotation of said body in the reversed relationships, characterized inthat one part only of said brush is adjusted in a truly radial directionupon being reversed and all other parts thereof are moved a lesserdistance than said radially moving part.

12. A rotary agitator for a suction cleaner including a rotatablecylindrical body with a brush seat therein, said seat having sides andeach of said sides lying in a single plane which intersects said bodyand makes an angle of less than 90 degrees with the major axis thereof.

DALE C. GERBER. EDWARD R. SWANN.

